“If I speak now, the roof will be on fire,” Salah said as he walked through the press after the match. “Fire?” asked one of the English reporters. “Yes, of course,” replied the Egyptian wingman, walking away.
Salah jumped into the game from the bench in the 79th minute. Even before he ran onto the pitch, he said something loudly to coach Klopp. His teammate Darwin Núñez even had to calm him down. Otherwise, the still sharp Salah might have gotten into an even bigger conflict with the coach.
The otherwise very productive winger is experiencing a slightly poorer period. He scored “only” twice in the last eight games. In the past six games, he started in the base three times and came off the bench three times.
“We talked about it in the cabin and for me it’s a done deal,” Klopp commented on the rift. He claimed that Salah had already calmed down and understood everything. “At least that’s my feeling,” he added, saying he wouldn’t say publicly what the argument was about.
According to former Reds striker Peter Crouch, similar situations do not reflect well on the club. “Salah is a footballer who has started most of the games for Liverpool and he will be very grumpy if he stays on the bench,” he told TNT Sports. “Nobody likes to see things like that between a coach and a key player.”
“It’s a clash of egos. These are two important people in the club. There must be respect and reverence between them for how they have helped each other in their careers. Salah was a bit suppressed, which he doesn’t like,” thinks former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock
A 2-2 draw means Liverpool are gradually falling out of the title race. He is only two points behind leaders Arsenal in third place and only one point behind second-placed Manchester City. However, he has played the most matches, even two more than City. So with three rounds before the end of the league, they have to rely on the hesitation of their rivals.
What is certain is that after the season Klopp retires. He should be replaced by current Feyenoord coach Arne Slot. There is also speculation about the future of Salah, who has scored 210 goals in 346 matches in seven years at Liverpool but is out of contract at the end of next season.
“He was one of the best players we have seen in the history of the Premier League. Fantastic. But his form is declining and it seems to me that he could move. It might suit both parties. Salah would move on and Liverpool would get a lot of money to invest,” former Rangers player and coach Ally McCoist thinks. Salah has scored 24 goals in 41 games for The Reds this season.
